Chapter 50: Settling the Matter
Little Shanghai was swept up in their bravado, and his own confidence surged.
"Yeah, he lives right nearby. That old bastard messes with me every single day, bullying me because I’m an outsider. The guy has no skills to speak of—can’t even solder properly. He’s just jealous that I can fix anything and know more than him."
"Fuck it, it’s settled. We’ll deal with him in a bit!"
Zhao Wendong made the call right then and there. Little Shanghai was his brother now. Bullying Little Shanghai was the same as bullying him, Zhao Wendong, and that just wouldn’t fly!
The group ate and drank their fill, not leaving a single grain of rice or bite of vegetables. Zhao Wenjun insisted on going to the Suns’, but Zhao Wendong refused. The horse-drawn sleigh was Commune property, and the grain on it was their family’s food for the winter; it absolutely couldn’t be left unguarded.
Leaving Zhao Wenjun at the agricultural technology station, Little Shanghai led Zhao Wendong, Zhao Wenwu, and Liangzi to Sun Defu’s house.
Sun Defu was lying on his kang feeling dejected. After watching for days, he’d finally found some dirt on Little Shanghai, only for it to turn out to be a complete misunderstanding. When Fatty Li had left just now, he hadn’t looked pleased. He’d really shot himself in the foot.
BANG!
The door was yanked open from the outside, and a blast of north wind howled in. A group of people charged straight into the room.
"Fuck! Who the hell leaves the door open? Are you asking for..."
Sun Defu yelled irritably. Halfway through his sentence, he saw who had come in and let out a terrified yelp, scrambling to the back of the kang and hiding behind a pile of quilts.
Seeing her husband’s reaction, his wife immediately started shouting at the top of her lungs.
"What are you doing? What do you people want?!"
"Shut up! We’re here to talk to your man. Keep wailing like that and we’ll burn your house down, you hear me?"
Liangzi roared, his face ferocious. Sun Defu’s wife obediently shut her mouth.
"So you’re Sun Defu? Little Shanghai is my brother. You keep messing with him, does that mean you don’t respect me, Zhao Wendong?"
"Zhao... Zhao Wendong?"
Sun Defu’s heart skipped a beat. Among the handful of notorious hoodlums in the Commune, there really was one named Zhao Wendong. He was supposedly from Dragon King Pond Village, by the sea.
"That’s right. It’s fine if you don’t know me. If you’ve got a problem with it, you can come find me in Dragon King Pond Village anytime!"
Hearing that Zhao Wendong really was that hoodlum, Sun Defu’s heart went cold. These guys had all the time in the world to make your life miserable. They were like dog shit; what decent person would want to step in that?
Besides, these guys always traveled in packs. Piss one off, and you’d have the whole gang on your doorstep.
"Sun Defu, come on, get over here. Stop fucking hiding so far away. I just want to talk to you. I’m not gonna hit you!"
Seeing Zhao Wendong beckoning to him, Sun Defu slowly inched forward from the back of the kang.
Zhao Wendong pointed at Little Shanghai and looked at him. "Little Shanghai is my, Zhao Wendong’s, brother. I don’t care about what happened before, but starting today, if you bully him again, if you try any more dirty tricks on him, I’ll make sure your family can’t live in peace. Got it?"
"Got it!"
"Louder! Are you mute or did you not eat today?!"
Sun Defu swallowed hard. Looking at the ferocious group, he obediently accepted his defeat and shouted,
"Got it!"
"Alright, that settles it. Brother, that good enough?"
Zhao Wendong looked at Little Shanghai. Little Shanghai had expected they’d beat Sun Defu up to let off some steam, but he figured that just intimidating him like this might actually be more effective. So he nodded. Zhao Wendong gave a wave, and the four of them immediately retreated, gone as quickly as they came.
Before leaving, Zhao Wendong even politely apologized to Sun Defu’s wife.
"Sorry, ma’am. The boys and I had a little to drink. If we scared you, I apologize. It was just a small misunderstanding, and now that it’s all cleared up, we’re good!"
With that, the group swaggered off. Once they were gone, Sun Defu’s wife let out a long sigh of relief, then turned to her husband and started cursing him out.
"You son of a bitch! I told you to stop fucking bullying that educated youth from Shanghai for no reason! You wouldn’t listen, and now you’ve gone and provoked someone you can’t handle!"
Sun Defu hung his head and said irritably, "Why don’t you shut your trap? How was I supposed to know Little Shanghai knew a hoodlum like Zhao Wendong? If I’d known, do you think I would’ve messed with him?"
The four of them quickly returned to the agricultural technology station. When Zhao Wenjun saw them back so soon, the weight in his heart lifted. He had been on edge the whole time. He hadn’t wanted Zhao Wendong to go but couldn’t stop him. He’d wanted to go along and help, but he also had to watch their things. Seeing the four of them return unharmed, a happy smile spread across his face.
"Is it all taken care of?"
"Yup, all done. The guy’s just a coward who bullies the weak and fears the strong. He almost fucking pissed himself!"
"Hahaha!"
They all started laughing. Little Shanghai gratefully gripped Zhao Wendong’s hand and patted it firmly.
"Thanks, Wendong!"
He was truly grateful. Although he wasn’t a particularly soft person, being thousands of miles from home, he had always tried to be cautious and discreet. Now that Zhao Wendong had stood up for him, he’d have his backing. He no longer had to worry about being without support here.
"Shit, don’t be such a stranger, we’re brothers. What’s there to thank me for? If anything comes up, just let me know. Your Shanghai Beach is different from our neck of the woods. You guys are all civilized. That doesn’t work here."
"We’re off. Still have to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some things, and then we need to get back early to prep the boat. We’re heading out to sea tomorrow."
"Yeah, okay. I’ll wait for you at the dock over by the Commune tomorrow evening."
There was a small dock not far from the Commune, about four li away, but it was much closer than coming to the Commune from Dragon King Pond. Zhao Wendong and Little Shanghai agreed that if they had a good catch tomorrow night, they would dock there at the Commune, and he would come meet them.
They put the diesel barrel on the original sled by itself, then hitched it to the horse-drawn sleigh, pulling them both in a line. Zhao Wendong had wanted to leave some vegetables for Little Shanghai, but he firmly refused, saying he usually ate at the station anyway, and giving him food would just benefit Fatty Li and the others.
In the end, Zhao Wendong couldn’t win him over and had to take the things back.
"Fine, then next time I’ll bring more good food and we’ll eat here again!"
"Yeah! From now on, whenever you come to the Commune, eat here. I’m usually at the station all by myself. It’s boring as hell."
"By the way, Little Shanghai, Liangzi, do you guys know anyone in the Commune who has a good hunting dog? A yellow one."
They both thought for a moment, then shook their heads. Zhao Wendong sighed and had no choice but to drop it. ’Maybe it’s not in the Commune, but in a nearby village,’ he thought. ’I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.’
After saying goodbye to Little Shanghai, they had walked quite a distance but could still see him standing at the entrance of the agricultural technology station, waving. Liangzi remarked with some emotion,
"I’d seen that guy a few times before and just thought he was skinny and listless. I never expected him to be so much fun—interesting and loyal too."
"Hehe, right? Would I introduce you to someone who’s not reliable?"
"Oh, give me a break. You’re the most unreliable one of all!"
"Get lost!"
Zhao Wendong and Liangzi exchanged a few words and started roughhousing again. Zhao Wenwu, standing to the side, yawned. He was a bit too full, and now he was getting sleepy.
"By the way, Dongzi, what are you planning to buy today?"
As Liangzi spoke, he glanced at the two sleds behind them. ’This brother of mine is way too extravagant,’ he thought. ’Other people buy things one by one; he hauls them away by the sled-load.’
Zhao Wendong waved his hand expansively. "We’re buying fifty yuan worth of stuff."
"How... how much?"
Liangzi was completely stunned. "Fif-fifty? Holy shit! Dongzi, you’ve really struck it rich! Why do I suddenly feel a little... weird about it?"
"Hahaha, that’s what they call ’fearing your brother will suffer, but also fearing your brother will drive a Land Rover’."
"Land Rover? What the hell is that?"
"It’s a big Jeep!"
Zhao Wendong gave him a different explanation, and Liangzi instantly understood.
"Ha, you know, you’ve got a point there. I want you to do well, but if you started driving a big Jeep, just thinking about it makes me feel kinda crappy!"
"Oh, get outta here!"
"Hahaha!"